Illustration by Efi Chalikopoulou
It's late August, and Jidenna looks like he's about to melt. Granted, we're in an air-conditioned car driving around Manhattan, killing time before a dance rehearsal in preparation for his performance at the MTV Video Music Awards a few weeks from now—but the 30-year-old musician's dressed like a tall cone of pistachio ice cream, all swirls of green and beige from head to toe. It's just one of many expressions of his personal style created bespoke by him, Whippa Wiley, and Madam Kateri, the respective creative director and designer of Jidenna's artistic collective Fear and Fancy."I made these clothes—I didn't make these shoes, but I'm working on it," he says with a grin, explaining that his interest in clothes dates back to his obsession with Michael Jackson's personal style circa Off the Wall. "I have more in common with an Amish man, or a Hasidic Jewish man, than I do with fashionistas. I love style, but I love the fact that I went through the process of making a bespoke suit, too. I would never buy a pre-rolled joint—rolling the tree up is part of the fucking process, period."This ride is a moment for Jidenna to take a breather from the week's activities: tons of meetings and press opportunities in advance of his debut album, The Chief, mixed with smoke sessions and knocking back glasses of Sazerac, a cocktail he was first introduced to by video director Alan Ferguson (husband of Solange Knowles) while recording the ubiquitous 2015 single "Classic Man." "I like drinks that are both hard and tender," he says with a laugh. "I love anything that feels like an iron fist in a velvet glove. That's the kind of guy I am."Continue reading on Noisey
Advertisement